New Europe Film Festival

The phrase "New Europe" may sound like a contradiction in terms, but for the purposes of this film festival it refers to the 10 states which joined the European Union in 2004, and the two that came aboard in January 2007. More specifically, this festival, which is now in its second year, focuses on the accession states in central and eastern Europe.

Last year, films from five countries were shown and this year the list has been expanded to include Romania, Slovenia, Poland, Lithuania, Hungary, Estonia and the Czech Republic, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. The programme - which runs from April 4 to 13 at the Filmhouse Edinburgh before a portion of it tours to the East End Film Festival in London (April 17 to 24) - is, says director Jan Naszewski, "an opportunity for the audience in the UK and the immigrants from eastern and central Europe to establish a dialogue about their life".

The programme features a mixture of films that have already featured on the big screen and previews of upcoming releases, with the selection picked to highlight eastern and central Europe as seen through the eyes of young people and children.

Vallo Kirs as Kaspar in The Class

Among the highlights of the 12-film programme is hard-hitting Estonian film The Class (2007). With a plotline informed by the Columbine High School shootings, it takes a radically different approach to Gus van Sant's Elephant, suggesting that there are, indeed, reasons children see violence as the only option. Gritty and gripping, it demonstrates how blind adults can be to the problems of adolescence.

The carelessness of adults is also a feature of Dorota Kedzierzawska's I Am (2005). This Polish drama examines the plight of a little boy, who finds an escape from his bleak existence through a blossoming friendship with a girl from the wealthier side of the tracks. Also exploring the drama of relationships is Beauty In Trouble, a look at the morality of love. This a welcome second chance to see Czech director Jan Hrebejk's follow-up to 2005 ensemble piece Up And Down, as it screened at the Edinburgh Film Festival last August. The performances by the two young actors Adam Misík and Michaela Mrvíková - who play the children caught in the middle of things after their mum falls for an older bloke when her husband is jailed - are noteworthy.

Hungarian body horror extravaganza Taxidermia (2006) also gets a fresh turn around the block, after its limited release in cinemas last year. Tracing three generations of one family, György Pálfi's dark comedy delights in the surreal, although some of its vomit-laden imagery is not for those with a weak stomach.

California Dreamin' is being shown at its full length

Those who prefer to eat a box of popcorn in safety at the cinema might be better opting for California Dreamin' (2007). This Romanian film by Cristian Nemescu - whose accomplished short film Marilena From P7 (2007) won plaudits at several festivals - offers a comic and thoughtful consideration of American intervention in conflict, when a NATO transport train becomes detained at a rural station. Sadly, Nemescu died in a car accident along with his sound designer Andrei Toncu while the film was in post-production. If you can't make it to Edinburgh, the film recieves a UK release on May 30.

Themes of war can also be found in fellow Romanian film Paper Will Be Blue (2006). Radu Muntean's movie takes a look at the night of the Romanian revolution through the eyes of a young soldier.

Other films showing include Polish actor/director Jerzy Stuhr's dark comedy Twists Of Fate (2007) - which sees an amoral student find himself on a collision course with a guilt-stricken professor - and the French New Wave inspired Polish film Wednesday, Thursday Morning (2007), examining what happens when a woman turns a man's life upside down.

Rounding out the programme are Hungarian relationship drama Fresh Air (2006), Polish comedy Reserve (2007), Lithaunian fable You Am I (2006), and Teah (2007) - a co-production between Bosnia-Herzegovnia, Croatia, Poland and Slovenia - which is a fairytale about friendship set in the confines of a magical forest.

For more information about the New Europe Film Festival and for tickets visit:

• The Official Site
• Edinburgh Filmhouse
• East End Film Festival